Concrete Angel
by loveydoveymidget261
Summary: Based on the song by Martina McBride. After a fairy tale ending gone bad, who will be there to help her pick up the pieces of her shattered life? LillyxOliver.
1. Hiding the Bruises

**A/N: Alright. So this story is a future fic. Lilly, Oliver, and Miley are all 17 years old. It's also written in first person, Lilly's POV. This idea may be a little cliché, but I hope you find it different (in a good way, haha). Just in case you don't know, sure ships are Loliver and Jiley. This is my first fanfic...Hope y'all enjoy it!**

I bite my lip, hard and draw blood. I focus on the clangy metallic taste in my mouth. I try to think about the taste rolling around my mouth, try to think about the splotch of blood that is sure to be a red spot on my lower lip.

I try to lock out the heated conversations; even though _he _is doing all of the talking. I try to lock out the door slamming, the fist pounding, the sound of punches and elbows and slaps. I try not to think about my aching body...

"You FUCKING BITCH!" A voice echoes into my inner thoughts. I recognize that voice instantly. I would recognize it anytime, anywhere. It's _him._

He has smacked me across the face hard and some of my hair falls out of its already messy ponytail. He pushes me up against a wall and punches me in the mouth. Blood dribbles out and he speaks.

"You bitch, you wanna fuck everybody you see! Huh?" I try not to let him get to me, try not to believe what he is saying. " Nobody cares for you; you slut. Nobody."

_It's not true. _I want to scream. I want to shout. I want to yell. _It's not true. That's not how it is! I have love! I have friends! I have what you'll never have because you're too busy knocking the hell out of people! _Instead, what comes out of my mouth is a whimper.

He takes it as an answer. He pulls my hair and elbows me in the stomach. I am silent. I let him do whatever he wants to do to me; it will be over. _It will be over._

Somewhere in the distance, I hear the sound of a car pulling into the wet driveway. I hear the soft sounds of the rain, going pitter-patter pitter-patter against my window; it is so unlike what I am going through locked in my room.

I try to think of whose car it is, but then I realize it is Oliver. And he is coming to my house. I recognize the sound of the rusty spare key being used to open the door...

Fortunately, _he _realizes it too. He harshly lets go of me, and says "Don't think it's over. I'm not done with you yet." It is almost a whisper, but it is loud enough for it to ring through my ears.

He pushes me down the stairs and forces me into the kitchen, the only place where Oliver cannot see me. I can hear _him _going down and I hear Oliver, saying "Is Lilly in?"

And all I can think of is... _I can't let him see me like this. I can't. God, please help me. _

I run out the back door, hoping to get out without Oliver seeing me. I run...After I am safely out the door, I glance back and see Oliver still engaged in a conversation with _him. _

I run, on and on...Until finally I have reached my destination. The beach. It is wet now, but it is my solace. Until someone puts their hand over my shoulder, lightly. I turn around. It is a mistake.

It is Oliver. He eyes me; my chapped and bloody lips, my limp, messy ponytail, my dirty knees..for I have fallen down too many times to count. He glances at me again, and flinches, as if looking at my condition has somehow hurt him.

His voice soft, he asks, "L-Lils?"

**A/N: Alright. How was it? Good? Bad? So bad you wanted to puke? Sorry about the idea being so cliché, I know a lot of people have done it before. I just wanted to try this out. This is my first fanfic, ever. And I'm not so confident about it.**

**Sorry, I'm not so good with confidence. Like, I don't have any self confidence whatsoever.**

**But reviews would make it alright! Jk about the reviews, but please let me know what you thought. I'd love to hear it. I mean, sorry this is so short. But if you review, I'll be your best friend. And give you a cherry on top D**


	2. See the Pain Behind the Mask

**A/N: Okay. First of all, I never thought I would say this. But I got, like, 7 reviews and I am jumping up and down! I mean, there are stories out there that get, like 2 reviews a chapter. And I am very happy y'all decided to review. **

**Stats for this story: (so far) 7 reviews, 78 hits (awesome!), 1 fave (awesome..its that good?) , and 7 alerts! **

**Thank you to all my reviewers: Spencer-Sweetie, xJiley4evax, Valx3, ForeverPalz, DisneyClassic, lilerin91, and spokadotz1!**

**It means a lot to me. But, if you read this, I hope you'll leave your thoughts. Just how it was, you know? I mean, I got my lazy butt to actually write a chapter, so can y'all just leave your comments, complaints, compliments (lol) after you read it?**

**Okay. I'm not going to bore you anymore…you can just read it, haha.**

**Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Hannah Montana. **

It is Oliver. He eyes me; my chapped and bloody lips, my limp, messy ponytail, my dirty knees..for I have fallen down too many times to count. He glances at me again, and flinches, as if looking at my condition has somehow hurt him.

His voice soft, he asks, "L-Lils?"

I stare at my shoes. I have no answer. My tongue is stuck in my throat. My mouth is dry. And above all, I am scared.

I find myself thinking of how different he looks. He has grown up now—he has grown into his huge head. His teeth are white and straight, his smile more pronounced. But his chocolate eyes are still the same. Still warm and loving. They have not grown cold to me….yet.

Oliver rubs his thumb against my cheek. Silent tears are slowly running down my face, one after another. The beach is isolated, lonely. No one is there except for Oliver and me.

He speaks again. "Lils, um, you wanna go home? I'll go get my car keys, they're in m-"

"No!" I shout. My voice has been recovered for a second, a short period of time. Before I know it, it is lost again. My throat is dry and sticky once more. There are a whirlwind of cotton balls stuck in my mouth.

In the soft rain on the wet beach, I feel everything washing away. The blood on my face, the scrapes on my dirty knees, my tears. Oliver's shaggy hair is wet now and plastered onto his face. I notice his face and I am almost laughing; until I realize that the smile on my face has turned out to be a grimace.

He silently pulls an arm around my waist. I take a sharp, fast breath in and slowly let it out. It stings. Not from Oliver's touch, but from the blows _he _had given on me on my side. Oliver notices this, and silently pulls his arm away. Instead, we turn around together. He walks with me, his fingers entwined with mine. _Doesn't he hate me yet? _

We walk together, to his used Ford Mustang. He has acquired it after working every day after school. He opens the door of his passenger seat, and I silently get in. He gets in the car and silently starts the engine. Linkin Park's _Numb _starts playing and Oliver slowly turns it off.

The rest of the car ride is spent quietly. Silence is a thick fog, surrounding me and Oliver, but Oliver's hand is still tightly gripping mine. I know that this is a sign of protection. His hand is warm and loving, just like him.

We come to my house. My silver Beetle stands in the driveway, along with my mother's Lexus ES350. _Thank God, Mom is home._

I silently get out of the car. Oliver repeats my actions. With my eyes I plead. I am sorry. _I'm sorry, Oliver. For all of the trouble I caused. For everything I did. For everything you had to go through. _

He nods. He understands. He has stood by me my entire life, so why am I thinking that he will let go now? _I won't let you go, Oliver. I won't let you go._

He gives me a brief hug, his strong arms wrapping around me. A feeling of warmth surrounds my body; only to go as soon as he has pulled back.

He gets back in the car. _This is my battle. I will have to face it alone._ I take a deep breath and slowly push the front door open. I walk into the living room.

I see my mother, in front of a couch. She is kissing _him._ It is a sweet, passionate kiss. My mother's face is flushed as she runs up to me and gives me a hug. My mother is falling in love all over again. With _him._

I see her about to ask how I have gotten the black eye, but I cannot tell her. _God, please. Give me the strength._ I shuffle to the stairs and try to run up them, but my side hurts and I wince.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see my mother having a sweet conversation with _him. He s_miles a wolfish smile. Directly at me.

_He _is the reason why my grades are dropping.

_He _is the reason why I cannot talk to anyone anymore.

_He _is the reason why my life is in danger.

_He _is the reason for all my troubles.

He is my _stepfather._

**A/N: Alright, how did y'all like this one? Poopy? I know. I think this one is a lot worse than my first one, but oh well.**

**Also, last time I got 7 reviews. Please, this time, let's make it 10. Or no updates. Okay? I don't want to write a story when no one is reading it.**


	3. Bearing the Burden of a Secret Storm

**A/N: Awww. Thank you guys sooo much! I asked for 10, and I got 10!! I'm very happy, and thanks for all of your awesome reviews! And I got 302 hits! How fricking awesome is that?**

**applebee2004: Thank you soo much! Lol, haha. Apparently I didn't need 5 more reviews.**

**lilerin91: I really appreciate it! I hope you'll keep on reading this story ;)**

**spokadotz1: O.o Hahahaha, thank you sooo much. I'm a very redundant person too! (As you can probably tell from these messages, haha) Glad to know there are other random people like me out there!**

**Valx3: Awww. Thank you!!! It really means a lot to me.**

**chewynbj: So I was like, PMS? And then I realized it was Post More Soon, lol. Anyways, thank you for reviewing! And if you know the song, my story won't end exactly like the song does.**

**ViennaHottie12: Awww, thank you soooo much! **

**sandy26: Hahahaha, thank you. I love Lilly and Oliver too!**

**Mr. Fishy: Awww, thank you sooooo much! LOL, I don't think any writer here has much confidence. But thank you for the compliments anyways! I also wanted to say thank you for the "Write for yourself" comment. It's really true. I hope you do see more of this story!**

**And yes, Lilly and Oliver rock as a couple! I think they would look really cute if they were one. And they fit together, you know? Like, you know how people talk about having someone whose hand fits in the gaps between their fingers? They're like that. **

**ForeverPalz: Awww, thank you!!!!!!!! SOOOO much! Again, I'm repeating myself a lot here, but I mean it EVERY single time I say it! **

**Julx27xluvsxHSM: Again, thank you soo much! For both the reviews! First of all, if you've heard the song, it won't end exactly like the song does. And yeah, I'd hate to make her actual dad the abuser.**

It is late at night, and I don't want to hear my mother's sickly sweet conversation with _him._

I turn off the light. Without bothering to change into my pajamas, I slide into the bed and pull the covers around me.

_I am tangled in a cocoon in my own bed for safety while my abuser is beneath my feet. And I expect it to keep my safe. Nice going, Lil._

I close my eyes, and wait for sleep's heavy cloud to envelop me.

I wake up to my mother, who is gently tugging on me to get me awake. "Lilly, honey, it's 11:00. Wake up. Lilly?"

I open my eyes slowly. My mother gets up and walks out of the room, she knows that I am now awake.

Everything starts to slide into focus. The August sun is shining brightly, straight to me. It blinds me and I decide, instead, to stare at the red and black Mickey Mouse clock on my nightstand.

I almost smile at the memory, reminding myself of how Oliver and I were both six when we got them, because we both went to Disney World and decided to get identical clocks.

But my smile quickly turns into a grimace. The cuts on my mouth are now clear, and it hurts to even smile.

I dress quickly, throwing on a yellow tank top, dark roll up shorts, and a pair of worn in tan flip flops.

Instinctively, I reach for my lip gloss. I try putting it on, but my hands are shaking and I end up smearing lip gloss all over my lips and face. _What's the use?_ I wonder. I leave the makeup alone and head to..._Where? Where am I going?_

I head to the beach, greeted by the soft sounds of the waves washing ashore. I spot Miley and Jake. I am about to head over to them, but my feet start walking in the direction opposite them. I end up at the Snack Shack.

And suddenly I am jealous._ Why? Why me? Why am I the one_?

I look at Miley. She doesn't notice me. She is smiling, laughing happily at Jake, who is making an idiot out of himself. I am annoyed.

_She has everything, the friends, the looks, the grades. She has the pop star alter ego, and the movie star boyfriend. She even has the rock star father. And her rock star father doesn't abuse her._

I turn around. Oliver is sitting on the beach too, only he is sitting alone. He is hugging his legs to his chest. I know that position.

_He's worried. Why is he worried? _He is staring at the waves, and his shaggy brown hair has flown into his eyes. Again.

Leaving the Snack Shack and Jackson and Rico who are still fighting, I walk over to Oliver. But as soon as I sit down, he scoots away. _He's mad at me?_

I try not to believe it. So I sit down again, this time closer to him. And he scoots away. Again.

"Oliver?" I ask. "What's wrong?" His face looks like..._Dammit, why can't I read his face?_

"What's wrong? Lilly, when are you ever going to see far enough beyond your own face?"

I am stricken by surprise. My jaw drops open.

"What?"

"You know what." He says angrily. "I come to your house, and you're running away so that you can't see me-!"

I interrupt. "You're mad because I didn-?!" _I can't believe this._

"Lilly, shut up and listen to something other than your own voice!"

My face twists in surprise, hurt, anger, confusion. _What the hell is he talking about?_

He continues. "And I find you on a wet, isolated beach. You have bruises and cuts all over you, you're shaking so hard you look like a drowned rat, and you're scared like hell! Something is wrong Lilly. I just want to know what."

The last words he speaks are so soft, he's almost whispering. He looks concerned and for the first time since he scraped his elbow in third grade, I think Oliver is about to cry.

It hits me hard. Like someone has slapped me in the face. _Oliver is going to cry. Because of me._

"I-I-I can't." That's as much as I manage to get out before I am running. Running as hard as my weak legs will take me...

I don't stop to look after me. I don't want to see Oliver's face...even though I know him so well by now that I can bet that his face has shock, anger, confusion, concern and hurt written all over it.

_And I put those feelings on his face._

The thought makes me feel horrible.How can I do that? To Oliver? My best friend?

Then another thought strikes me.

_Where am I going? What am I doing? _

My inner emotions go from shock, to anger, to just feeling hurt. The same feeling I get at the end of every day.

Away from all my companions, for Miley and Jake are still too wrapped up in each other to notice me, I take a deep breath.

And I walk home...only to find _him _sitting in the kitchen. All alone. Legs on the table. Smiling. At me.

_He's been waiting for you, Lil._

**A/N: O.o Cliffie. Although we all know what's gonna happen. So. Personally, I didn't like this chapter so much. I thought the first one was much better than this. I guess I don't really do dialogue, I'm much better at emotions and thoughts. But, oh well. **

**Also, this chapter strikes me as very similar to one in Toxxic-hugs' Sending Postcards from a Plane Crash. Sorry for that. Um, this story takes place in summer, right when school is about to start. So, please, I didn't copy off of her or anyone else.I tried to make it my own, but I guess all stories like this have a sort of similarity to them.**

**Also, sorry. I was gonna talk about her putting on makeup, but I have no idea how to do makeup. So I decided on the one thing I can almost do: lip gloss, haha.**

**Finally, please leave your thoughts! I'd love to hear what you thought—good or bad. I'm also kind of worried about one thing: that I didn't explain everything enough. You know, like everything wasn't descriptive enough? So, please tell me whether I need to do that more. This is my longest chapter yet!**

**Love,**

**Ashvi **


	4. Wishing I Was Never Born

**A/N: OMG, y'all are so frickin awesome!!! And I am sooo sorry, I'm doing a summer camp this week and a summer course for psychology (can you spell N-E-R-D?)I love all of you! I got 31 reviews, 5 faves and 13 alerts! And 523 hits in 3 chapters!!**

**Biiig Thanks To:**

**applebee2004**

**Julx27xluvsxHSM: Um, I think you'll like this chapter. But also because it's not completely depressing like depressing (Did you get that?)**

**lilerin91: Awww, thanks! And I know. Poor Lilly.**

**spokadotz1: LOL! I know, I feel like that every time I read a chapter on one of my favorite stories!**

**sweetcaroline: Aww. I know it's sad, but I don't really do humor. Or haven't tried it yet. Maybe after this one is done….**

**xJiley4evax: Well, me too. But you know how sometimes you wanna tell people stuff but you just can't? It's that way with Lilly.**

**starcrossed.emma: I think Emma's a cool name too. I always used to hate Ashvi when I was little because it wasn't a normal name, but I'm not exactly normal so I guess it all works out. LOL.**

**Well, I don't think Oliver is a jerk. First of all, he's a donut, LOL. Second, um, he just saw like scraped knees and stuff. And that she was wet. Which she was, obviously, because she was on a wet beach in the rain. So, you can't really draw the conclusion that she is being abused from that. All he sees that is "wrong", is in the way that she acts. Sorry for being so confusing!!**

**Also, basically Miley didn't see Lilly because she was too wrapped up in Jake. She wasn't purposely ignoring Lilly. I hope you didn't think that she was too OOC.**

**LOL. Beat it like a scrambled egg. I don't think she could do that...he's a FASTER egg. And he's scrambled, all right.**

**LOL. Going away present. Well, I update pretty quickly. I just don't update on weekends. And this story will probably be done by the end of summer, Like, way before that.**

**JennySaysHa**

**ForeverPalz: Aww. I'm really repetitive too. Like..a lot. But it wasn't a dream. Unless what I wrote was confusing….In that case, I'm REALLY sorry!**

**ViennaHottie12: Aww, you were honest. I liked that. And I agree with you. It wasn't the best chapter.**

**Countingsheep**

**and Valx3: LOL. You listen to Concrete Angel whenever you read this. That song makes me cry...LOL, you're going to listen to it over a 100 times! As long as I don't have to write over 100 chapters, I'm good ;) **

**Dang, my notes are like, a page long. Anyways, I'll shut up so you can read it!**

And I walk home...only to find _him _sitting in the kitchen. All alone. Legs on the table. Smiling. At me.

_He's been waiting for you, Lil._

My first instinct is to run. _Run. Run, Lilly. _So I do. Only I get as far as the doorknob before _he _has wrapped his hand over mine. And not lovingly.

_He_ puts his hands on my shoulders and jerks me around. "Are you trying to run away from me?" He sneers. _Here we go again. _I see his hand come up about to slap me. For a second, I think that maybe I should just let go, let him do whatever he wants to do to me.

_What the hell are you thinking, Lil? You can't let him do this to you anymore. You have to get help. You have to fight. Whatever he does, you have to fight._

So I try. I open my mouth to scream, but his hand is already clamped over my mouth tightly.

_Dammit, how does he know what I'll do?_

"Nobody cares about you, slut. I thought I already told you that."

I don't respond. There is a pin drop silence. I chew on my lip and focus on what my lip feels like. It feels scabby; there is a lot of skin. I end up thinking about how I _really_need to get some Chapstick on my lips before they peel off.

And then I see _his_ hand on my mouth. It hasn't moved.

I try getting the hand off. I focus on the large hand on my mouth. The diamond ring my mother bought him because she was bursting with joy is now glistening in the hot sun. I try to turn my attention to his beefy hand because I know the sight of the ring my mother bought him will bring me to tears.

_She works her sweat, blood and tears for that ring, she's had a divorce with an already not so great dad, she looks for 12 years for true love, and she still manages to pick out the bastard._

"Next time, you're going to listen to me. Okay? OKAY?"

I say okay, softly, and try to peel the hand off of my mouth, but I don't get very far because a car honks up our driveway and _he_ nervously jumps up and away from me.

We hear the sound of a key being turned in the doorway. It is my mother. She looks ecstatic and is glowing with joy. She rushes over to _him_ and speaks.

"Mike, I got this great idea for our honeymoon! Why don't we go to Hawaii for a few weeks? I haven't been there yet-"

_Of course you haven't. We're not rich enough. _Not wanting to hear the rest of the conversation, I give my mother a soft hug and rush out the door.

And this time, I know where I'm going. The treehouse. My treehouse. Oliver's treehouse. Our treehouse, the one that Oliver's dad built for us when we were three. _The one place that I or Oliver go to whenever we're angry or hurt. _

It isn't that tall. We were three, and it was tall then. But it isn't tall now. I haven't been there since forever, but I have a vague idea. I walk across my house into the patch of trees.

_Left, then straight until our marked tree. Yup, Lil. There it is, orange band and all. _

I almost smile at the memory of three year old me and my best friend Oliver struggling to tie the orange band onto the tree, until I realize that Oliver probably isn't my best friend anymore. Or a friend. Or _anything._

_How did that happen? One day, and Oliver and me aren't even friends anymore?_

The thought bothers me. It constantly brings a chill down my spine...Like I'm losing a part of my life.

_It's true. Oliver is a part of my life. An important life. And I don't know what I'd do without him. And my friendship is too important to let a small fight rip it apart._

And I know what I'm going to do. Even if Oliver was wrong, knowing him, he would take forever to say sorry._ He is seriously the stubborn-est person in the world. Is that a word? _

So I climb up all three and a half (yes, there's a half step) steps, to relax before I go looking for Oliver, only to find...Oliver?

He's sitting on "his" side of the treehouse, with the by now really stale candy that he had stored over 14 years ago. I see him, but he doesn't see me. And his eyes aren't red. Or puffy.

And suddenly my anger comes flooding back. I have been bawling my eyes out for days on end, and he hasn't shed a single tear? I cried over him! And he hasn't spilled over once?

I don't want to see his face anymore, so I try to get out of the tree house. Big mistake. I bump my head on the top of the little house, and fall back on Oliver.

_Wait. He was coming after me?_

I get up, brush myself off, and turn around angrily. But my heart instantly melts when I see the look on his face. His eyes are pleading, begging me to give him a second chance.

I get down the treehouse and watch him do the same. Then I turn to face him. At first I am staring at my shoes, but slowly, my eyes make their way up to meet his.

_Baby blues meet chocolate browns..._

"Lils. Please, just look at me. Look at me. In my eyes, please. I'm sorry. I really, truly am."

He taps my shoulder lightly. I flinch.

"I'm really sorry, Lils. I don't know what else to say. You see a lot of things. You're not a blonde bimbo. I value our friendship. You're my best friend, and I don't want to let it go. At the cost of anything."

_Anything?_

He softly puts his hand over mine. He squeezes my hand. It is a warm, comfortable feeling. He gives me a gentle, soft hug and I return it. And just like that, I know my Ollie is back.

I think he feels something wet on his shoulder because he gently pulls me up from him. His shoulder _is_ wet. And one, solid tear is running down my left cheek. He takes his thumb and gently grazes it along my cheek, wiping the tear away. And another tear slowly makes its way down my right cheek. And he says nothing, just pulls me close to him again.

**A/N: Had to end it with something like that. Lilly and Oliver can't fight forever ;)**

**Also, this chapter really isn't that depressing. I probably write depressing ones better than this, I don't really think this one is that good either. But I thought the mood was getting too heavy, so I tried something lighter.**

**Please leave your thoughts! Although I probably won't have a problem with that anymore, LOL.**


	5. Crying in the Middle of the Night

**A/N: OMG. I am sooooo sorry! I should have updated a looooong time ago. I got 851 hits! And 8 favorites, and 17 alerts. But I'm doing a medical camp, so I'm really sorry. And I'm trying to pass psychology...sigh**

**Thank You to:**

**Starcrossed.emma: Bimbo is a funny word. And I liked when Oliver and Lilly got reunited too. But that's not the end of this story…**

**Lilerin91: Me too!**

**Spokadotz1**

**Iloveneds**

**Sandy26**

**Simplypink: Mike is a jerk and a half. You are sooooo totally right! I love the Lilly and Oliver connection too!**

**OTHlover04**

**Haha169**

**ForeverPalz: I love Lollie! And there will be more. Sometime.**

**Valx3: Aww! Thank you!! And I know I say this everytime, but I mean it. I really do. Great chapters, hmmm..I hope they'll all be great! And about flooding, I do it too xD**

**keolani78: Awww, thank you! **

"I'm really sorry, Lils. I don't know what else to say. You see a lot of things. You're not a blonde bimbo. I value our friendship. You're my best friend, and I don't want to let it go. At the cost of anything."

_Anything?_

He softly puts his hand over mine. He squeezes my hand. It is a warm, comfortable feeling. He gives me a gentle, soft hug and I return it. And just like that, I know my Ollie is back.

I think he feels something wet on his shoulder because he gently pulls me up from him. His shoulder _is_ wet. And one, solid tear is running down my left cheek. He takes his thumb and gently grazes it along my cheek, wiping the tear away. And another tear slowly makes its way down my right cheek. And he says nothing, just pulls me close to him again.

And lets me wet his shoulder all I want to.

We stay like that for a long time. And when I pull back, he just laces his fingers with mine. We stay like that...for a long time. Until I look at my watch and see it flashing: it's 10:17 pm.

_I need to get home! _

I quickly say bye to Oliver. I hug him softly and rush back to the house. Until I realize exactly where I am going...

Home. _It used to be my sanctuary, and now I do anything to get away from it._

I take a long, deep breath. I am tired. Of everything. Tired of all the fist punching, tired of all the name calling, tired of being told to go to hell.

I trudge my way slowly to my house, taking time to eye the patterns in the cement of the sidewalk, and swirls of rock rolling around in the dry cement. Finally, even as I try my best to procrastinate, my feet land in front of the door of my house.

But upon reaching it, I am surprised. _He _isn't there. I am happy. I know that today, at least, I will not die.

I see my mother sitting at the dining room table with a cup of coffee in her hand.

"Hi, Mom." I greet her and give her a soft hug.

"Hello, Lilly. How was your day?" She returns the hug.

"Alright. Where is, um, Mike?" I can't call him my father. _He's even worse than the jackass my father is._

"Oh, he just had some extra work to do at the office. He'll be home later, though."

I nod and turn to go upstairs. The feeling of anxiety is gnawing at me again when my mother stops me.

"Lilly, honey? Mike and I were thinking, we got married but never actually went on a honeymoon. You mind if we do that?"

_No, not at all. I won't be surprised if you come home in a coffin, though._

"No, it's fine." _What am I talking about? She's my mother! All her life she's been slogging her butt off just so I could get an education. This is my turn. I need to let her live, too. She has finally found the love of her life. And even if he is a bastard, I need to let her be happy._

"Oh, and we were thinking about having you stay over at Miley's or Oliver's. We wouldn't want you to stay at home all by yourself."

She gently squeezes my hand. I nod, and this time when I go upstairs, the feeling of anxiety has gotten worse.

I enter my room and flip on the light switch. I dig in my pocket for my cell phone. I open my cell phone and the recorded voice beeps, "7 new messages." _7?_

I look at them; they are all from Miley. _Figures._

"_Hey, this is Miley. Lilly. Come on. Just talk to me. You know you want to." _

Finally she just gives up and mutters "_Call me back." _before hanging up.

I sigh. I really should let her in, she's my best friend. Besides Oliver. But there's a gap between us lately, and I can't close it. And even though it makes me feel like I'm falling in a dark hole, I'm going to let the feeling stay.

I look at the room around me. The lights are on in my room, but they are out in everyone else's. That's how I feel right now. _I am the one in the light, everyone else is in the dark. _

I sigh again. I quickly change into my pajamas and flip off the light. I get in under my covers and curl up into a ball. Then I focus on the stars I glued onto my ceiling when I was 6. I look at them swirling, turning into shots of brightness on the endless stretch of dark known as my ceiling. And wait for the fog of sleep to slowly overcome me.

I wake up to the Malibu sun shining brightly. I squint. Knowing that my sleep won't come back until late at night, I throw the covers off of me and get up to brush my teeth.

It is a mistake. As soon as I enter the bathroom, I feel a pair of hands on my shoulders. They jerk me around. _Not again..._

I look at _him _with wide frightened eyes. He slaps me across the face. Hard. My cheek stings and I slowly raise a hand to it.

But then I hear footsteps coming up the stairs. _He _hears it too. He pushes me. I fall against the wall, but recover just in time to hear my mother coming into her room.

I act like nothing has happened, and take my brush and squirt toothpaste onto it.

Later, I am changed. But there is nowhere to go. I take a deep breath, and head over to Miley's.

I reach the house. For some reason, the door is unlocked. I grasp the knob and turn it. The house is empty, deserted. Until I hear peals of laughter coming from upstairs. I know who is laughing. And I know where she is...

I head upstairs into Miley's room. And I push the door open.

Miley lazily turns her head to look at me.

"Hey." The greeting is simple, but her eyes are warm and welcoming.

"Hey."

I sit down on the edge of her bed. At first she seems a little apprehensive, does she want to ask me something?

Then I notice Oliver. He is sitting on a bean bag chair in her room. He waves to me and smiles. His goofy grin, the one I've been seeing almost since I was born and still can't get enough of.

I wave back and smile. It is a genuine smile.

"Lilly-" Miley's voice cuts into my thoughts.

"Yeah?"

"I needed to ask you something."

"Anything."

I see Miley hesitating to ask. She is staring at the pattern of her covers on the bed. _Come on, just ask me already._

"Lilly, are you, are you pregnant?" The question takes me by surprise and I almost fall down onto the floor.

But Oliver's strong arms are holding me up. He wants to be strong for me, but his face looks nervous. I look away, and I blush as I realize how close he is next to me. Then my mind registers Miley's question again. Miley starts to ramble about how I had all the symptoms. How I was nauseous, how I looked tired. It's true. I have bags under my eyes. But am I pregnant?

_Hell, no._

And suddenly I cannot help myself. I find myself laughing. Laughing so hard my sides are about to split.

I see Miley looking wide eyed at me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Oliver carefully eyeing me. _Does he think I'm crazy?_

It doesn't matter anymore. I think Oliver has always known that I'm not normal. So I keep on laughing. And it feels good. Because this is the first time I've laughed in a long time. And I feel carefree. Like... like I'm floating on air.

Oliver is also staring. Again. But slowly his lips curve into a goofy grin.

And suddenly, Oliver is holding me. Again. And it is all he can do to stop me from falling onto the floor. Again.

**A/N: Sorry that took so long! I really am. I liked the ending better than the first part. But I always like that part better...so..what did you think?**

**Click the purple button..you know you want to see what it does!**

**Ashvi**


	6. Turning Out the Light

**A/N: Okay, everyone, I am sooooooooooooo sorry for taking such a long time to update! Usually, I'm faster with updates but these past 2 chapters have been really slow. I was kind of confused about where to go with this story, so I actually took the time to write down an outline. So, this story is probably gonna have about 16 chapters in all. I hope that all of you will take the time to read it! And leave me a review ;)**

**And a Biiig Thank You to all of my reviewers:**

**lilerin91: I love how you review each and every chapter. Starting from the first. It really means a lot to me!!**

**spokadotz1: Same thing. You reviewed from the very first chapter until now! And I loved all of them, btw. Thank you sooo much!**

**keolani78: Thank you!! If I were in Miley's place that prolly would have been the first thing to come to my mind too, lol.**

**sandy26: Awesome! I love making you guys laugh, even if I didn't really mean to.**

**iloveneds: OMG, you really think so?? Thank you soooo much for believing in me! Those 4 sentences made my day!!**

**The Secret of Life: I love your screenname!! And thank you!!**

**bella-9470: Thank you! And don't be sad, I think you write great! Please keep on reading! And reviewing, lolz.**

**Valx3: Thank you soooo much! You're one of the most popular writers on FF, so coming from you, that really means a lot to me!!**

**Akaish: I am so happy you decided to give this story a chance! And I hope you'll love the rest of this story too!!**

**starcrossed.emma: I love your screenname too! Thank you! And I totally agree, I do like Lilly more than Miley. But Miley's not gonna be ridiculous in this story. She'll be, well, Miley. Anyways, Lilly is prolly gonna be at Miley's house in this story, but there will still be a lot of Loliver moments! And I hope you have a great time in Ireland! I've heard that it's really pretty ;) Just make sure you review when you get back xD**

**sballLuvr5: I always like the ends of my chapters more than the begininning, lolz. And thank you!!!**

**silverjazz: Aw, I didn't mean to confuse you. Lilly just thought it was funny that Miley thought she was pregnant.**

**haha169: They will realize who Mike really is. Trust me ;)**

**Julx27xluvsxHSM: Thank you soooooooooooooo much! And that part of the chapter just came naturally to me, like I know that's how Lilly would react :)**

**Nicole: I loved your review. Mainly because, it's one thing when people compliment your story. And it's another when they really, truly mean it. Which you did. I think. So I really wanna thank you sooooo much! And I thought I wouldn't really like this story so much, because I have no self confidence and I always think whatever I do sucks, but I actually kind of like this one. I hope you keep on reading and reviewing! xD **

**snowstargirl:Thank you sooooo much! I think you're a really good writer so the fact that someone like you took the time to read my review, then read my story and actually review it meant a lot to me!**

**And because you're probably bored as heck right now and really want me to get on with the story, here it is...**

"Lilly, are you, are you pregnant?" The question takes me by surprise and I almost fall down onto the floor.

But Oliver's strong arms are holding me up. He wants to be strong for me, but his face looks nervous. I look away, and I blush as I realize how close he is next to me. Then my mind registers Miley's question again. Miley starts to ramble about how I had all the symptoms. How I was nauseous, how I looked tired. It's true. I have bags under my eyes. But am I pregnant?

_Hell, no._

And suddenly I cannot help myself. I find myself laughing. Laughing so hard my sides are about to split.

I see Miley looking wide eyed at me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Oliver carefully eyeing me. _Does he think I'm crazy?_

It doesn't matter anymore. I think Oliver has always known that I'm not normal. So I keep on laughing. And it feels good. Because this is the first time I've laughed in a long time. And I feel carefree. Like... like I'm floating on air.

Oliver is also staring. Again. But slowly his lips curve into a goofy grin.

And suddenly, Oliver is holding me. Again. And it is all he can do to stop me from falling onto the floor. Again.

We spend the rest of the day laughing and talking. Miley is being a totally girly girl, I am being a total dork, and Oliver is just being...Oliver. But somehow it makes me feel better. Like everything is going to be okay. Like everything is going to be alright.

I look at Miley's blinking clock and realize that it's flashing 9:43. I ponder over whether I really need to go home, or at least to the hell I once thought was home. Going against my better judgement, I lazily get up from the edge of Miley's bed.

"It was great seeing you, Miley. I'll see you later."

She smiles at me and waves. Then, she rushes up to me and squeezes me so tight, I can't breathe.

I wave to Oliver, and hear Miley say "Oliver, you're staying, right? We'd better go downstairs. Dad is gonna call us for dinner."

Then I turn around and walk out of the room. I go downstairs to see Jackson on the couch, trying to wrestle a five legged chicken on a video game screen. I laugh softly. _He's never gonna beat that chicken._

I'm about to walk out of the house when Mr. Stewart stops me. "Hey Lilly, darlin', stay over for dinner. I'm makin' my famous deep fried fried chicken."

"Thanks, Mr. Stewart, but I really should get on home." I smile at him and wave, then turn around. My hand is wrapped around the doorknob when another hand wraps over my free one.

"Lilly, stay. Please?" I whirl around. It is Oliver. His eyes are begging with that puppy dog look. I sigh, knowing that I will probably never be able to say no to anything he says.

"Fine. Just let me tell my mom." He smiles, and his eyes are twinkling. He laces his fingers with mine and we walk back to the dinner table.

35 minutes later, I finally get Miley and Mr. Stewart to let me get out of the house, when Oliver says, "I'll walk you home, Lils."

I roll my eyes and say, "I can get there myself."

"Yeah, but I can walk you there."

I roll my eyes again. "Oliver, I live a block away from here."

"And I'm going to walk you home."

"And what if I don't want you to?" I question.

"Then I'm going to walk you home." I roll my eyes. "Bye Miles, bye Jackson, bye Mr. Stewart, thanks for dinner, it was really good!" I say. And step aside so that finally, Oliver can walk me home.

There's a soft breeze billowing on the summer night. It blows into my hair and it feels good. Actually, the whole situation feels good. I'm walking home on a cool summer night. With my best friend, his arm around my waist. _Hakuna matata. No worries._

And I can't help but let a tiny part of me believe that the shattered pieces of my life can be brought together again.

He reaches my doorstep and pulls open the door for me. I hug him as he lets go, and just as I am about to walk in the door, he says something. His warm breath tickles my ear and it sends shivers down my spine.

"Lils, will you go to the party at Johnny's with me tomorrow?"

I hate these kinds of parties. But Oliver's actually _asking _me. So maybe, just maybe...this one won't be so bad.

I look up into his eyes. "Sure."

He pinches my waist and shuffles down the steps. I close the door behind me and look into yet another set of brown eyes.

But these aren't Oliver's eyes. These eyes are beady. They are glassy. They are unwelcoming to me, cold and hard.

And they look right into my own frightened blue ones as a hand comes into contact with my right shoulder.

"Please, s-stop." The word has barely left my mouth when _his_ hand lands a punch on my face. It comes out as more of a whimper, and I turn to my side and spit blood out.

He yanks my hair, pulling my face down and watches the tears roll along my cheeks. I close my eyes and wait for it to be over. But suddenly, as soon as I close my eyes, all I can see is Oliver.

_His shaggy brown hair. His goofy smile. The way his fingers lace with mine and fit perfectly into the gaps._

I open my eyes. And wait for it to stop. And when it has, I go upstairs to take a long, hot shower, and wash off my cuts and bruises.

A day later, I am in Miley's room, getting ready for Johnny's party. Against my will, she has dressed me up and I look surprisingly attractive in a simple blue dress and black leggings.

I hear the doorbell ring, and find myself rushing to the door to figure out who it is. I almost knock down Robbie Ray's prized multi-colored table with "legs" in my hurry. I open the door and see...Jake and Oliver.

And even though Jake is the movie star, I feel like Oliver is the one to sweep me off of my feet tonight. And it's so true...

He opens the door of his Mustang for me, and grins. I grin back and climb into the seat.

At the party, he enters, his fingers entwined with mine, creating a whole other hand.

We spot Miley and Jake, making out in some corner. Loud, blaring music is on and other couples are grinding into each other.

I look back at Oliver, and grin. He grins back. He puts his arm around my shoulder, but I wince and he withdraws it.

He glances at me with a questioning look, and I shrug it off. "Skateboarding trick gone bad." He looks at me skeptically, and mutters something about getting punch before walking away.

_Shit._

Every time I try to tell someone, my tongue gets caught in my throat and I get that nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Suddenly, I don't feel like being at the party anymore. When Oliver comes back with the punch, it's only one glass. I feel like I have just been punched in the stomach.

For the second time tonight, I go against my better judgement. I rest my chin on his shoulder, and softly murmur, "Ollie, I'm sorry."

He just shrugs my chin off of his shoulder. Then, he shakes his head and walks away, leaving me alone for the night.

**A/N: Okay, I know it took really long to post a really crappy chapter, but I actually have a pretty clear idea now of where I'm going with this. I changed my outline (again). And I know what I want to do with the next chapter, and it's probably not what you're expecting(in a good way, I hope) . Unless you can read my mind.**

**Anyways, please leave your thoughts :)**

**Love,**

**Ashvi**


	7. Caught in the Hands of Fate

**A/N: Okay, so this should go much faster. First of all, Oliver's not a bad guy. He really isn't. And he knows what you're thinking. :( You're right, there's no way you could possibly resist a cute smiley like this. Now that I'm done blatantly copying off of Valx3, I'm going to thank ALL of my reviewers, thank you sooo much:**

**lilerin91: I love the multicolored leg table too! And thank you for reviewing!**

**bella-9470: I get what you mean. Sometimes the saddest stories are the best ones. And thank you for saying my writing is incredible!!**

**iloveneds: Thank you!! Btw, have you ever seen The Lion King? It's a phrase used in that movie. It means "no worries".**

**LightningStruckBlackDog: Thank you sooo much!!! And very sorry for the un-recent update!!**

**Spencer-Sweetie: Lol, thank you for the review! And it's okay if you review late, because I always update late. The first 3 chapters or whatever I updated in like, 3 days. And then the gaps started becoming really long.**

**spokadotz1: Thank you!!**

**sandy26: Man, Imma just make you get an account on FF. But thank you!!**

**OneInAMillion12: Thank you!! Again, coming from you that means a lot. When I first came to FF, I think Girlfriend was the first story I read. So, yeah. And again, very sorry about the late update. **

**haha169: Lol, thank you,**

**Valx3: Lol, thank you so much!! Comments from you always mean a lot to me. I really don't know what else to say, lol, because so many good things have come out of this story. So now I'm pretty much going around to everyone saying thank you Even if it makes me sound like a dork and a broken old record. Which I really don't mind because I believe that deep down, we are all dorks ;)**

**kelsi x babe92: Awesome. I love new readers! Omg, thank you so much. I think that is the best compliment anyone could give me right now.**

**snowstargirl: Thank you! I think that's what I wanted to yell to Oliver too, and I'm the writer ;)**

**Autumdragon: Sorry for the long wait!**

**Julx27xluvsxHSM: Lol, I love getting reviews from you. Thank you. And I hope you'll like this chapter.**

**starcrossed.emma: I always love getting reviews from you!! They're funny and I get so many compliments, lol. For Oliver? I feel for him right now. So many people have said that about him ;( **

**Oh, and please call Sinead. I want her to read this too. Even if she's the btchiest cousin ever. Which she's probably not, because she seemed so nice. Her name sounds really pretty too. Like Shanay.**

**and popcorn.kisses: Man, I love you. And your reviews. But mostly I just love you, babe. And don't guess anymore. You like, got the whole thing on that PM, lol. Anyways, I hope you still like it. Btw, I loved In His Car. And the fact that you took my advice for once, lol. And omg, are you actually giving me a…dare I say it…compliment??? Thank you!!**

**And to anyone who just read the author's note to the review above: Just for the record, I'm not lesbian. It's an inside joke.**

Every time I try to tell someone, my tongue gets caught in my throat and I get that nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Suddenly, I don't feel like being at the party anymore. When Oliver comes back with the punch, it's only one glass. I feel like I have just been punched in the stomach.

For the second time tonight, I go against my better judgement. I rest my chin on his shoulder, and softly murmur, "Ollie, I'm sorry."

He just shrugs my chin off of his shoulder. Then, he shakes his head and walks away, leaving me alone for the night.

And suddenly my chest feels tight. I can't breathe. I need to get out of here. Now. I watch Miley grinding against Jake, loud music blaring from speakers. I grab my jacket and walk straight out of the house. No one notices me, and if they do, they obviously don't care.

I know exactly where to go, and hopefully, it will be ready for me. A chilly wind blows through as I make my way on the sidewalk. I shiver. Suddenly, I see something pop out of the shadows. It _is _a shadow. And it's going wherever I go. Okay, I'm officially creeped out.

I turn the corner. It turns the corner too. I hug my arms around myself and keep on walking. Small shivers slide down my spine and I'm jogging, running, anything to keep away from _it._ I hurry along until I reach the beach. Then I slide into a seat at Rico's.

I see Jackson almost putting up the "Closed" sign when he spots me and a few other customers. He turns around and walks immediately over to the other customers. To keep myself busy, I drum my fingers onto the table. Suddenly, a hand slides itself over my eyes.

I like this hand. It is warm and feels good on my icy skin. And as a voice asks into my ear, "Guess who?" I feel little tingles up and down my spine. I whip around and meet chocolate brown eyes. _Wait...I like Oliver's hands?_

He slides into the empty seat next to me. Then he says, "Damn, Lilly, you walk too fast. Did you think I was stalking you or something?" I can't do anything but shake my head dumbly. I'm still in shock. _He _was my stalker?

"Okay then…" He says, drawing out the 'O' in okay. We sit in silence until Jackson smirks and finally finds the time to come over and take our orders.

"I know, I know." He says. "One brownie obsession, 2 spoons please." I wasn't really planning on sharing a sundae with Oliver, but since he's not going to say anything, neither am I.

Jackson comes over again, with the dessert. Oliver pays him. I try to pay, but he won't let me. He picks at the ice cream and I pick at the brownie. I fidget in my seat and look over at the hot dog wrapper that someone left on the table; Jackson hasn't taken it up yet.

Until Oliver says, "Party got to you too?" and flicks some ice cream at me.

I ignore his question. "Are you trying to say sorry to me?"

"Maybe I am and maybe I'm not."

"Well you had better say that you're sorry and mean it."

He starts off by saying, "Or wh-?" but doesn't finish because I take a big glob of ice cream and smear it all over his face.

"Oh it is on, Truscott!" I'm running away from him, turning corners all over the beach. Oliver has the sundae cup in his hands, chasing me. People stop to stare at us.

"On like butter on toast!" He yells, before catching up to me. He takes the sundae cup and smashes it in my face. "On like ice cream on your face!" Then he's sprinting all over the beach.

I grab the bowl before yelling, "You don't even put butter on your toast!"

A half hour later, we're both sticky. Melted ice cream is all over us. He takes one look at me and starts laughing. I try not to look at him, but find my eyes drawn to him. He's a mess—ice cream in his hair, all down his back, liquefied and dripping off of his face. And so I stare at him. And I start laughing too.

At first it's just a giggle, but slowly it starts growing. And soon I'm laughing so hard that I'm clutching my sides. The only bad thing: Oliver knows. And he still has the sundae cup in his hands.

He inches towards me, and then just starts chasing me around. But then I find myself pushed up against a wall. Oliver's pinning me down, the half empty sundae cup still in his hand. With the other hand he's holding my arms down.

And just when I think he's about to take the sundae cup and smear the contents all over my face, he mutters a "Sorry."

Then, he dips his head low and crashes his lips onto mine.

**A/N: Okay, I am soooooo sorry about how long this took. It's not even good. But I promise I won't take this long to update ever again. Sorry. Really. I know this was a sucky chapter, but please, if you read, review!**

**Ashvi**


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